While Rick Grimes' story will continue, Andrew Lincoln is ruling out a return on The Walking Dead TV show. Both The Walking Dead comics and TV show are told from the perspective of Rick Grimes, a former police officer who awakens from a coma to find himself in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. Rick then had to lead his family and a group of survivors to safety from both the walking dead and brutal members of the still living.
While The Walking Dead series isn’t a strict adaptation of the comic that preceded it, Rick always remained at the heart of the story. That’s all set to change, with Lincoln recently departing the show after nine seasons. While Grimes' death was heavily teased, Rick ultimately survived his final episode, and it’s since been confirmed a series of three Walking Dead TV movies will find the character having to deal with a whole new set of problems in another survivor community.
Related: Unanswered Questions After Rick's Final Episode
Of course, Rick’s departure is going to lead to big changes on The Walking Dead show. While Rick’s adventures will continue elsewhere, in a recent interview with The New York Times Lincoln ruled out any sort of comeback on the series, stating plainly, "I can categorically say that I will not be returning to the TV show."
The actor also revealed he’s relieved he can finally talk about The Walking Dead movies now fans know the character survived: "It was a compromise because I didn’t want to be disingenuous to fans, but then, of course, I didn’t want to give away the story. But yes, I’m very relieved that I can talk about it now."
The Walking Dead producer Scott Gimple has stated elsewhere that while the character is returning for the movies, fans should know Rick won’t be coming back to the show. The TV movies are said to be bigger in scale, with AMC seeking to expand the universe of the franchise.
While Andrew Lincoln is never likely to return to The Walking Dead series in any major way, it also feels like a given that when the show finally ends, Rick will make some kind of return appearance or cameo. With the departure of its main character, fans will be curious to see how the show will function, and while ratings have noticeably dipped this season, both fans and critics feel the overall quality has been a big improvement on the last few years.
More: The Walking Dead Wrote Maggie Out So Badly You Didn't Even Notice
The Walking Dead season 9 airs Sundays on AMC.
Source: The New York Times